Page 43 of Perfectly Wedded

“Definitely not. Where is our flight attendant?” I glance up and down the aisle. “I could really use a drink about now.” Or a hole in the floor to jump out of. Even an emergency landing would be better than Vale discovering Jaz’s honeymoon advice.

“Your sister loves her to-do lists,” he says. “Even the to-do lists she creates after she’s done something just so she can cross it off. Knowing Jaz, I’m sure it was full of all kinds of important tasks for your honeymoon.”

We both know that Jaz would never give me that kind of list for a vacation. She might have an unhealthy attachment to her color-coded lists, but she’s also intuitive enough to know when they’re not needed.

I search the front of the plane for the flight attendant, who seems to be hiding. “It was a girls-only list. Private stuff. Not meant for husbands.”

“Intriguing,” he says with that unfairly persuasive smirk thatinstantly disarms me. “I’d love to know what kind of private stuff.”

“You’ll have to pry it from my cold, dead hands, Vale,” I warn him with what I hope is my equally persuasive death glare. “Which might actually happen when I go scuba diving and forget how to use my oxygen tank.”

He squeezes my hand gently and smiles. “You will not run out of oxygen during scuba lessons. I’ll make sure of that.”

Maybe, but the way he’s sucking oxygen from the plane by giving me that sexy smile is going to be my undoing.

He strokes his thumb along the back of my hand, sending tingles up my arm. “And I’llgladlyget a lemonade with you poolside and rub lotion on your back. But I won’t leave you sulking in the room. We’ll have funtogether.Remember the list we came up with earlier—the one about how we behave as newlyweds?”

“Yes,” I say, my heart skittering across my chest. “But that doesn’t count here, right?”

“Those still hold true.”

I mentally replay them.Be together all the time. Touch each other as often as possible. Make it believable, whatever it takes. And never, ever have sex.

“The last one makes total sense—if we want to stay friends.” I give him a quick glance. “But why would the rest apply, when no one’s around?” It’s not that I don’t immediately warm to the idea. It’s that I’m terrified of losing myself in this charade—of blurring the lines between what’s real and what isn’t. It could happen too easily. I could lose myself in this game completely.

“People will be watching. This is a test for us. I think we need to get comfortable with each other.” His gaze locks on me. “Get to know each other... on adifferentlevel.”

“Like marriage isn’t enough of a different level?” I ask, suddenly feeling nervous.

“Sloan, I think we need to date first.”

Suddenly he’s raised the stakes. Because if he treats me like someone heactuallycares about—with romantic gestures, kissing,the whole dating kit and caboodle—how am I supposed to stop myself from believing our relationship could be real?I won’t.

“Will you go out with me tonight?” he asks.

If I say yes, it will shred my emotions like ice in a blender. He’ll make me feel likehis, wrapping himself around my heart in the most splendid ways.

But I’m already committed to this partnership. I can’t back out now.

“Okay,” I finally say. “Just don’t ask me what the list says.”

He chuckles. “Deal.”

Until now I’d mostly been dreading the idea of enduring this honeymoon alone. But now everything feels like the moment before you jump out of an airplane.

Like this could be the best or worst decision of your life.

When we finally reach our hotel, I’m drenched in sweat from the short walk from the shuttle stop.

“I’m off to find a drink,” I tell Vale, leaving him in the lobby check-in line to explore the hotel by myself. I discover a cute tiki-style outdoor bar near the pool waterfall and settle on a barstool.

Not a minute after I take my first sip of ice-cold lemonade, my phone dings. It’s a text from Vale.

My heart does a weird flip when I readVale MacPherson would like to cordially invite you...

Then it has a link, which I click on. My phone opens a virtual invitation that says,“Dinner overlooking the ocean. We’ll watch the sunset while enjoying a delicious meal together. After-dinner activities include: a walk on the beach or a sunset swim, your choice. If you accept this invitation, festivities begin at five sharp.”

I check my watch. It’s four p.m., which only gives me an hour.

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